


just a little braver

by constant



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: 3racha are kings, J.ONE hates minho at first, M/M, My attempt on crack, Nonlinear Narrative, Or does he, Slow Burn, alternating povs, i mean am i wrong tho, inconsistent updates, jisung is famous, minho drinks a lot im sorry, minho is a fan, minho is heartbroken, minlix are bffs, they're aged up by a few years, trigger warning bc minho has mild depression
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-10
Updated: 2019-08-28
Packaged: 2019-11-14 21:12:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,331
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18060218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/constant/pseuds/constant
Summary: “Huh.” Minho huffs when his eyes finally decide to function normally and he recognizes the person standing before him. Minho’s sure that he is still indeed drunk, because his mind is starting to play tricks on him now.“Felix! You wouldn’t believe this, but SpearB’s in your living room right now.”- In which a heartbreak accidentally leads Minho to a yacht with his most favorite trio, 3racha.





	1. hoodie season

**Author's Note:**

> some of yall really do not listen to 3racha's songs and it shows

**9 hrs, 49 minutes earlier**

Felix follows Minho with his eyes as the latter climbs on a bar stool with just one hand, the other holding a bottle of beer. It's a dangerous attempt, considering the stool doesn't have enough space to guarantee that it can hold both of Minho's drunk feet up for only god knows how long.

Felix knows he should be stopping his friend from his drunk antics and pulling him down. He knows so well that he should be prying Minho's 8th bottle away from him, and telling him to  _get it together_. But Felix also knows for a fact that even if he does all that, Minho can still manage to turn the situation around and end up reprimanding Felix instead, with Minho pointing a finger at him saying,  _No, Felix. You get it together._

So he doesn't bother. Besides, drunk Minho is too entertaining to watch. Only at some points, anyway, and this is definitely one of those times. It doesn't even surprise Felix one bit when Minho successfully climbs up the stool and is now standing up and looks over the empty bar.

Part of the reason why Felix doesn't bother to hold his friend back from doing anything stupid is the fact that they are alone in the bar. Therefore, if Minho does even anything potentially embarrassing, it wouldn't even be so, unless Felix films him with his phone and shows the video later to the rest of their friends. Lucky for Minho, Felix is feeling nice today.

Felix works part-time as a bartender on the weekends, and it was exactly an hour before the bar closes when Minho walks in, already looking like he was drunk, and still demanded for  _the strongest drink Felix knows how to make_ , in Minho's own words.

Felix had to stare at his friend for a second, a hopeless attempt for him to figure out if anything was wrong. But this is Minho, and  _ever since that bastard Hyunjin has left him for another guy, everything in Minho's life just started to get wrong._  Again, in Minho's own words.

Felix wanted to ask him if anything happened, if something happened with Hyunjin again, but he caught the manager giving them the eagle eyes so he decided that the talking can wait.

"Felix, did you even hear what I just said? I said-"

"Yeah, yeah. One long island iced tea, coming up!"

Felix flinched when Minho slammed his fists on the counter.

"I said,  _the strongest drink_. I don't need no fucking iced tea, Felix!"

If if weren't for his bloodshot eyes and pitiful expression, Felix would have called him a dumbass right before his face.

"Dumbass." Felix mutters under his breath as he makes his way to get his friend a beer. He figures Minho would be too drunk to notice that he handed him the exact opposite of what he has been demanding anyway, so he thinks it should be fine.

After half an hour and a couple of bottles of beer, Minho finally started to talk.

Felix soon found out that Minho ran into Hyunjin at a bus stop, and it was the first time Minho has seen him ever since they broke up.

The last time Minho talked about him was roughly three months ago, and even though Minho doesn't talk about him anymore, it doesn't take an idiot to find out that he hasn't completely gotten over the boy.

So now, here he is, standing on an unstable bar stool, drunk and whimpering, as he declares: 

"I am, in fact, has moved on."

It is the way his sentence formed grammatically incorrect that Felix realizes that that was his cue to forbid Minho from drinking some more, and maybe get him home. Because this isn't even Minho anymore. This is Pablo, his Latino friend who seems to know a lot about world history but somehow mixes up his grammar, and Felix knows that it wouldn't take a lot of sips of more alcoholic drinks for Minho to unleash Lúcio. And nobody wants Lúcio.

Felix has always found it weird that Minho has names for all the phases of his drunk self. And they're all Spanish names, and when Felix asked him why, Minho merely shrugged and said "Spanish names are cool."

Phase 1 of Minho's drunk self is when he's being too emotional. Minho calls him 'Alejandro'. Felix has met Alejandro a lot of times, and whenever he's there, a whole lot of feelings are always spilled everywhere. Sometimes, he can be crying. Sometimes, he's ranting. Sometimes, he's singing his heart out.

Minho is weird, but Felix is used to it.

The second phase is Joaquin, and this one is hard to notice. Minho claims it's when he starts to get cranky, or bossy, or violent. Hard to notice, because Felix sometimes mistakes the outbursts as something emotional, which makes him think that it was still Alejandro he's seeing.

Felix then mentally curses himself when he failed to notice that Minho was already Joaquin the moment he stepped into the bar a while ago, explaining the demanding attitude for the strongest alcoholic drink.

Now, he is Pablo, the third phase, the one looking like he is the most harmless, but is also the most threatening of all. Harmless, because he does not harm anybody. He simply tells you facts about the world history, mostly WWII which is his favorite, with a very annoying philosophical tone. And his grammar always seem to get jumbled up, and it's very funny to watch. But at the same time, Felix knows he should be scared of his life - of both their lives - because the dosage of Pablo's transition to the next phase is always unpredictable. It can be a whole bottle, a couple of swigs, or maybe just a sip, no one can ever tell.

Felix has only met Lúcio once, and he is  _wild._ It's when Minho starts flipping at strangers, it's when Minho starts kissing strangers, it's when Minho steals a traffic cone and places it over his head and claims he's a pilgrim with an orange pointed hat, and it's when Minho yells at the sky addressing only one certain star, calling him Hyunjin, and telling him how much he hates him but also proceeds to say that he cant live without him, and he starts crying and passes out at the middle of the road. These all happened in one night. 

Felix has managed to take Minho to his apartment without any fuss, and the latter sprawls himself on Felix's couch immediately and Felix couldn't be more grateful. It's like the trash took itself out.

Felix tucks Minho in with a blanket, and could only hope that his friend would feel a whole lot better in the morning. Maybe  _a whole lot better_  is stretching it a bit, so maybe just a little bit better. After all, Minho had been doing so good with this moving on thing, and Felix knows, as his best friend in the whole world, that it wouldn't take long before he completely forgets about his fartface of an ex. He just needs a little more time.

Felix wakes up to a sound of a door closing, and his mind is too hazy and sleepy to remember that Minho is sleeping in his living room. He starts to think about ghosts and vampires and the monster under his bed, or worse - serial killers, before shutting his eyes and forcing himself back to sleep.

When Felix wakes up again, this time at a reasonable hour in the morning, and finds an empty couch with a messy blanket, that's when it starts to hit him.

He doesn't panic though, because surely, that could only mean that Minho had gone home early because he has other plans for the day, right?

But it's saturday, and Minho has this awful rule of not doing anything remotely productive every weekend.

But Minho's also a morning person, so maybe he just went out to jog or buy milk or something?

But Minho always sleeps in whenever he drinks the night before.

And for a while, Felix's thoughts ran like that - back and forth, back and forth. It isn't until he finds Minho's phone among the mess in the couch that Felix actually starts to panic.

He turns the device on, and Minho's most favorite artist, his long-time wallpaper, and the only person that Minho claims to be the love of his life (and yes, not even Hyunjin compares to him), J.one, beams at him with a wide grin.

Felix stares at the phone long enough to realize that he's fucked, because it's only 7:14 in the morning and Minho never goes anywhere without his damn phone.

-

**present time**

Minho stirs in his sleep when a blast of music suddenly erupts from whatever source he couldn't think of. He hasn't opened his eyes yet, but that doesn't stop his head from spinning as soon as he comes into consciousness. 

“Fuck.” He curses under his breath.

This isn’t a hangover. Minho’s positive that he’s still a little drunk. If not a little, then maybe _a lot_. The familiar song continues playing, feeling like every beat of it slams into Minho’s throbbing head and Minho groans out loud. He couldn't believe it.

How much did he drink exactly to have him grunting over being disturbed of his sleep by one of his most favorite songs? If it had been any other time, Minho would have loved waking up to  _hoodie season,_ but his head is throbbing and he can still pretty much taste the alcohol in his mouth and the music is just  _so. loud_. SpearB spitting his verses didn’t help either, because Minho finds his uncooperative brain following the lyrics which makes him even dizzier than he already is, if that’s even possible.

“Felix, turn it down!!!!” He yells, voice muffled on the cushion he is laying on top on. He guesses he ended up on Felix’s living room couch last night, but why it feels a little firmer than how he last remembers it, Minho has absolutely no idea. Maybe Felix changed his furniture and Minho was just too drunk to notice it yesterday?

“FELIX, I SAID TURN IT DOWN-” Minho pauses when the song transitions from SpearB’s rap verse to a soothing voice Minho would definitely recognize anytime and anywhere – drunk, sober, hangover, or whatever else condition he may be in. “-BUT NOT BEFORE J.ONE’S PART IS OVER! Thanks.” He sighs the last word out, because all of a sudden, he is floating with the melody, and he finds himself swooning over his most favorite voice in the whole wide world. Minho hums to J.One’s verse, albeit off-key and feeling like his head is mere seconds to exploding.

He hears someone snort, and Minho immediately turns his body on the couch to look for the culprit without even bothering to get up. He has drank enough times to know that he will get an even more massive headache when he wills himself to sit up in an instant.

Minho can make out a figure standing a few steps away from where he is, and despite having just woken up with what feels like probably the worst hangover of his life, he’s sure that the person isn’t Felix. For one thing, this guy is way shorter than his friend is. Minho blinks as an attempt to focus his vision.

“Huh.” He huffs when his eyes finally decide to function normally and he recognizes the person standing before him. Minho’s sure that he is still indeed drunk because his mind is starting to play tricks on him now.

“Felix!” He calls out with a laugh, which he eventually realizes was a bad idea because his throat is so dry and he chokes on his own spit and he starts coughing like a maniac. When he recovers, he yells out again.

“Felix! You wouldn’t believe this, but SpearB’s in your living room right now.”

Minho settles for a softer giggle, and as he turns away to get back to sleep, he sees the man,  _SpearB_ , wear an amused look on his face.

Minho thinks it's probably the best time for him to step down on his obsession for 3racha, because judging from the way he’s having hallucinations right now, he isn’t exactly heading to the healthier lane.

Before Minho completely falls back to slumber, he hears another voice say, “Who's he?” and the voice oddly sounded a lot like CB97.

 _What the fuck,_ are the last words that crossed Minho’s mind before sleep gets to him again.

Yeah, he should definitely step it down.


	2. double knot

**13 hrs, 14 minutes earlier**

Minho believes he has moved on. After all, it had been three months. Three whole months since he last saw his face, three whole months since he last heard his voice, three whole months since he last looked into those eyes that had always made him weak in the knees. It wasn't easy trying to get him off his mind. Even if he wasn't thinking about him, he still was, because Hyunjin just seems to be always in his damn mind.

Hyunjin. Hwang Hyunjin.

Minho is so sure that he's finally over him, because for the first time in three months, Minho can finally laugh without forcing himself to. His smiles are more genuine now, and for the first time in three months, Minho can finally say that he has managed to free himself from the chains that had locked him up for two years.

But _'moving on'_ , Minho guesses now, is only just a state of mind. His heart does not feel this certain lurch anymore every time Hyunjin is mentioned in conversations with their friends, only because Minho had been expecting them to. You can't call that moving on, especially when you meet the person you had been trying to move on from at an unexpected place at the most unexpected time, and your breath still hitches when you see him and your heart falters, and you can't seem to find the right words to say to him. And that's exactly what happened to Minho as he waits at the bus stop on the way home on a rainy day.

He hears him first before he even sees him, and his heart reacts first before his mind can even wholly process the fit of giggles that felt both familiar and dreadful to him at the same time.

It isn't supposed to hurt anymore, but when Minho turns and his gaze lands on the set of eyes that used to tell him how much Minho means the whole world to him, it hurt anyway. In fact, it hurt Minho so fucking much that it took him all that is left of his will to not burst into tears right there, because he knows that doing so will not only show that he's weak, but it would also be so damn embarrassing.

"Minho." Hyunjin calls, and Minho just absolutely hates the fact that his voice didn't even falter. Not even a little bit.

Minho considers two options then: first is to run away, the second is to pretend he didn't hear him. He cancels the first option when he notices that the rain hasn't stopped from pouring and he thinks running away from a bus stop without any umbrella to protect him from the downpour would only make him seem like a complete idiot.

The second option is dropped as well, because Minho already made eye contact and he curses at himself because _dammit, Minho. Why can't you keep your eyes to yourself?_ or something like that.

"Hey." Minho manages to croak out, and to his relief, his voice doesn't crack.

"You alone?"

"No, I'm actually waiting for Felix." Which is a lie, because Felix works until late tonight, and Minho just didn't want to seem like a lone loser to his ex-boyfriend, especially when said ex-boyfriend has his own companion.

Minho's sight lands on the boy standing beside Hyunjin, and the boy sends him a look of recognition as soon as their eyes meet. Minho recognizes him as well, and he curses mentally because he couldn't believe how fate unfairly plays him like this.

"Oh, hey. It's you!" The boy says rather enthusiastically, and Minho only purses his lips, his lame attempt to a smile.

"It's me." He awkwardly responds.

"You know each other?" Hyunjin butts in, looking from the boy to Minho, then back to the boy again.

"Yeah, we met at the library. Actually, it was _outside_ the library,-"

Minho already knows this story, because, of course, he was _there,_ and he looks away from the boy, towards Hyunjin.

"-and I was on my way home when I found him. It was also raining then, and I noticed that he didn't have an umbrella-"

Maybe it was a wrong idea staring at Hyunjin, because now, all he can see is the way Hyunjin looks at the boy.

Minho doesn't need any confirmation to know that this is the person Hyunjin replaced him with, and it hurts. It hurts, not because Hyunjin used to look at Minho that way, but because he doesn't even think Hyunjin ever looked at him the same way.

It hurts, because the person Hyunjin replaced him with is the same cute and nice boy who shared an umbrella with him during a stormy day. The same day when Minho was feeling his worst, when he felt like the whole world had turned its back against him, and that boy was the only good thing that happened to him. God, He can't even bring himself to hate him.

"-so I offered him mine. I mean, no. I didn't lend it to him. We shared it." The boy smiles at Hyunjin, and Hyunjin smiles back at him, like they are the only idiots left in the world.

Minho, on the other hand, diverts his gaze across the street, where the thick downpour of rain clouds his view of an empty children's playground.

He feels the lump in his throat, and he's certain if he takes even a single glance at the couple again, he would just burst into tears right there.

"I'm Seungmin, by the way!"

Minho hears the boy chirp out, seeming oddly cheerful despite the gloomy weather.

Minho nods at him, careful not to glance at Hyunjin, and introduces himself back. "Minho."

"Sounds exactly like you to not bring an umbrella around when it's raining."

Minho feels the rage creep in his chest when Hyunjin speaks, and if he can't hate on Seungmin, then he can definitely hate on this one. He finds the courage to finally look at Hyunjin and stare at him dead in the eye.

Hyunjin recoils when he sees Minho's expression, and Minho suddenly feels so powerful.

Minho wants to say a lot of things. He wants to yell right at Hyunjin's face, ask him a lot of questions, demand answers out of him. But there's too much questions swarming in his head right now that he couldn't even grasp one and voice them out into words.

He manages to say only one thing, in gritted teeth:

"No one can predict the rain."

 

-

**present time**

When Minho wakes up, a 3racha song is still blasting from what he can only assume is a high quality speaker because he can hear the bass so perfectly, and Minho guesses that the sensitivity rating probably goes as far as 90 decibels because _damn_. Minho has never heard CB97's voice that loud and clear before.

 _'Mate, stop procrastinating._ '

Again, _damn_. That felt almost a little too real.

Minho rolls to his side and his gaze unconsciously fixes on the view out the rectangular window. His head is still spinning, though it does feel a bit better than it did when he woke up earlier. He finds the breeze of the wind blowing through his hair very soothing. The sound of the waves crashing doesn't help either, because the next thing he knows, Minho's eyes is already threatening to close again. He forces them open, however, because the view of the ocean out the window is just too beautiful to pass and-

_Ocean._

Ocean?

Minho immediately bolts up, panic gradually rising in his chest. He looks out the window again, and he sees nothing but a vast blue color, little ripples of waves dancing.

"What the fuck." Minho mutters under his breath, and he tries to think. And Minho finds it hard to, because he hardly ever thinks. He feels the cushion of the sofa he has slept on under the touch of his palm, and he runs his hand over it and it feels .. _expensive_. Definitely not Felix's sofa. A gush of the wind messes his hair and Minho turns to where it enters from - to his right - and his jaw drops at the sight. The sofa he had been resting on stretches out to the open space of a viewing deck of some sort, forming an L-shape with a very expensive looking coffee table at the middle.

" _What the fuck_." Minho says again, only this time a little louder as everything starts to slowly dawn on him. Maybe Minho is still dreaming. Maybe he's still drunk. Maybe it's the hangover. Maybe his hallucinations has upgraded to a higher level. But the smell of the ocean seems too real, the sunlight coming through the wide open door to the viewing deck prickles his skin, and the sound of the small waves gently crashing against their boat is audibly accurate for Minho to call it fake.

"I'm on a boat." He muses, and quickly tries his brain to get to work and give him an answer as to _why_ he is on a freaking damn boat.

"Actually, it's called a yacht."

Minho jumps at the voice, and he turns to his left, and sees two actual gods standing before him. If Minho's jaw dropped upon seeing the view at his right, the view to his left however, made him not only drop his jaw, but also make his breath hitch, and drop his panties.

Minho clasps a hand over his mouth, too shocked to say or do anything. _This is it,_ he thinks. This is the moment he has been waiting for - to meet his faves face-to-face, in the flesh, in real life. Minho has went through this exact moment in his mind countless times, where he finally gets to meet 3racha, and it sucks because the confident and chill Minho he had always imagined is far gone, and now Minho is just deadass panicking.

"Are you.. okay?" It's CB97 and Minho couldn't help but gasp yet again, because _omg, CB97 just spoke to him!_

Minho's gaze lands on SpearB, who for the entire time, has a glint of amusement in his eyes. The guy isn't actually that short from what other people deems him to be, and he suddenly thinks how it's so unfair for people to exaggerate things just to make things a little more fun.

He can't believe it. 3racha is here, right in front of him. Alive and breathing and quite giving him suspicious stares, but Minho doesnt even care.

He suddenly thinks back to all the time he had listened to their songs whenever he felt down, and how their music has encouraged and motivated him to be better, to feel better, to live better.

Minho knows he has to thank them for all those times, but he's suddenly feeling so overwhelmed and a lump forms on his throat and before he knows it, he breaks down into tears and starts telling them how much he loves them.

"I-I love you so m-much..." Minho dramatically clutches at his heart and drops slowly to the ground.

"Uhhh.." CB97 stares from Minho to SpearB, who's trying to hold his laughter.

Minho's on his knees now as he tries to calm himself down. Maybe he's just dreaming, maybe he isn't. Maybe he's hallucinating, maybe this is real. Either way, he has to compose himself, because real or not, he has to leave a good impression on his faves.

Minho feels someone approach him and bend over to pat him on the back. When he looks up, he meets CB97's gaze, staring down at him with the most concerned look anyone has ever given him. Minho almost faints.

"You okay?"

Minho almost faints again. CB97 is touching him. CB97 just asked if he's okay. CB97 is just less than a meter away from him.

Minho wants to say yes, but he can only manage a nod.

 _He's so beautiful._ Minho couldn't stop thinking. He feels the urge to run his hands through CB97's curly blonde hair, he wants to trace his jawline with his fingertips, and maybe-

Minho's thoughts are interrupted when someone clears his throat, and Minho notices that someone has entered the room to join them.

Minho doesn't believe in love at first sight, but right now, he feels the air get knocked out of him, and he feels like floating in cloud nine. Maybe it's just the hangover giving him that floating feeling.

Minho stares at the love of his whole miserable life with a half-opened mouth, all the things he wants to say to him hanging right at the tip of his tongue.

Minho doesnt even notice the obvious frown forming on J.ONE's face as he suspiciously inspects Minho with his eyes.

Minho just swoons at the fact that J.ONE is even laying eyes on him.

After what felt like an eternity, J.ONE finally breaks the silence, and Minho notices the snarl in his voice, making Minho jump to his feet and fix himself even when there isn't even the need to.

 

"Who the hell are you?"

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im so sorry if the story's a little confusing,, i added time stamps for the flashbacks and i just refuse to write this in chronological order for some reason lmao i accept constructive criticism!! pls yell at me @ twt: @hellochangbin


	3. tik tok

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk if you guys noticed but the chapter titles are named after 3racha's songs,, and the title of this fic, 'just a little braver', is felix's motto.  
> anyway,, just in case some of u dont know, 
> 
> _sasaeng_ or a _sasaeng fan_ \- an obsessive fan who stalks, or engages in other behaviour constituting an invasion of the privacy of, a korean idol or other public figure. (wikipedia.org)

**12 hrs, 34 minutes earlier**

Minho stares long and hard at the black panel door, his wet fringe sticking on his forehead and his clothes dripping on the empty hallway of the apartment building. He lifts his right hand to knock on the door, but then stops himself just in time when his mind gets the better of him.

 _You’ve already given him enough trouble in one day,_ he clutches at the plastic bag tightly, his other hand still hesitating by the door.

After Hyunjin and Seungmin boarded the bus, which was, coincidentally – Minho’s not even surprised anymore – the same bus he was supposed to take, Minho had ran away.

He didn’t think it through before sprinting away from the bus stop. All he knew was that the suffocating feeling was back, creeping unto every fiber of his being, and he just needed to get away as far from it as possible. Minho did not even know where he was headed. He didn’t even care if he got drenched in the rain, didn’t care about all the weird stares that pedestrians were giving him.  

He just kept running, feeling the gush of the cold wind against his skin and the sharp impact of the raindrops as it comes in contact with his face.

He can feel his mind racing, as well his heart, and he knew that it wasn’t even because of the running. And so, he went faster, pushing his limbs to their limit. Maybe if he strained his muscles, if his lungs struggle for some air, maybe his mind (and his heart) would divert to the physical affliction.

He’s just _so_ tired – tired of getting worked up over the same reasons, tired of having his heart broken by the same person, tired of being the universe’s impermissible stooge, tired of crying, tired of hurting, just – he’s just tired of _feeling_.

Minho kept running as he willed his mind to stop the train of thoughts that were threatening to take over his rational being. He kept running until he finally felt his lungs give out, and he had to stop to rest his hands on his knees as he gasped for air. He took large intakes of breath, sharp and painful, and for an alarming moment there, Minho actually thought he was gonna die.

When Minho recovered, he found himself under the canopy of a convenience store, and for the first time in a long time, the universe was finally on his side.  

He wasted no time and headed straight for the store’s entrance, walking directly towards the fridge section. Every step and move were all mindlessly executed, as how Minho usually is when he’s pushed over the edge. He grabbed a bottle, no, two. He grabbed two bottles of soju, thinking it would all be enough to numb the feelings he was currently trying to escape. Minho finished the first bottle in less than five minutes, and he knows this because he had his earphones plugged, a modern mellow song playing on repeat. He used the song to time his drinking.

As a matter of fact, Minho usually measures time and distance using songs. For instance, it would take him five songs to reach his apartment from Felix’s place if he takes the bus. Three and half, if he takes a cab. Took him 46 songs to finish Othello, one song to fall in love with 3racha, and all of the songs he has listened to so far (and still counting) to get over Hyunjin.

He thought the alcohol would numb his feelings away, but the only thing that the drink made numb are his lips, and a little bit on the tip of his fingers.

Disgruntled, Minho decided to pack the remaining bottle, along with a carton of banana milk that he took too long to decide if he was going to purchase or not.

The milk isn’t for him. It’s for the friend at the other side of the door, where Minho has been hesitating for over five minutes now.

Minho was just here an hour ago, playing Uno cards with the most precious boy Minho has ever known, talking about everything and nothing. He came in uninvited and with no objectives whatsoever. To put it simply, Minho was bored and he just wanted to hang out. And now he’s here again, but this time, he just wants some company.

After the long internal debate, Minho finally moves to knock lightly on the wooden panel, and it took only a few seconds for the door to swing open, revealing a bare-faced Jeongin with a pink hairband wrapped around his head.

“Hyung! You’re back!” The younger beams immediately, showing no signs of vexation, unlike how Minho has expected him to be. “And you’re wet. Why are you wet?” Jeongin’s brows furrows, his eyes morphing into a state of confusion.

Minho’s heart melts at the sight.

“I forgot something.” Minho says as Jeongin steps aside to let him in.

“Really? But I haven’t noticed any of your stuff lying around.” Jeongin rushes to the living room, where the two of them spent the whole afternoon earlier, and checks if he had missed anything. “Is it something really important that you had to come rushing back and get yourself soaked in the rain?”

Minho settles the plastic bag of their drinks on the coffee table, the guilt slowly creeping up on him for lying to the younger one.

“Didn’t I tell you to _always_ bring an umbrella – oh.” Jeongin freezes when Minho suddenly embraces him into a hug.

The thing about Minho is that he knows his friends too well. Which also means that he knows exactly who to run to in order to make himself feel a bit better.

Felix is the good listener. He’s literally the best one Minho has ever met. He reads emotions too well, and he’s going to try everything to pry those feelings and thoughts out of you because the boy just couldn’t stand not knowing what bothers you and not being able to help. For the six years of their friendship, Minho realized that Felix is good at giving advices about everything – everything but love.

And then there’s Jeongin, Minho’s cute little cousin who’s the human version of sunshine and everything nice, and is the total opposite of Felix in terms of giving advices, because the boy never gives advices at all. You could be battling a whole army and the boy wouldn’t even notice. Minho runs to Jeongin when he doesn’t feel like talking about what’s making him feel down. He runs to him when he needs company, because sometimes, that’s all you’ll ever need to feel better.

Before Jeongin can even notice that something is wrong, Minho pulls away from the hug, forcing a laugh that seemed almost too convincing, even for himself.

“I forgot to give you a hug.”

And with that, Jeongin snorts, but Minho can tell that the boy feels a little touched.

“And also, I came back to give you this.” Minho pulls the milk out from the bag, and Jeongin screeches in delight.

They settle themselves on the carpeted floor (for some reason, they never sit on the couch).

“And this one – ” Minho takes the bottle of soju out, “- is for me.”

Jeongin visibly frowns at the alcoholic drink. “Hyung, you’re drinking again?”

“Hey, you make that sound like I drink on a regular basis.”

“But don’t you?”

“I _don’t_ , actually. The last time I got super drunk was like, three months ago.” Minho shrugs as he opens the bottle, and they make a toast before taking their respective swigs.

“But when was the last time you drank anything?” Jeongin crinkles his nose at him. Minho fights the urge to pinch his cheeks.

In a small voice, Minho replies, “Two weeks ago.”

“See?!”

“What? Two weeks was a long time ago! Besides, it’s the weekend. Give me a break. _Please._ ” The last word sounded more desperate than Minho intended for it to, and if Jeongin noticed, he showed no signs of it.

Silence falls between them, and Minho allows himself to lean on Jeongin’s shoulder just when he starts to feel the first signs of alcohol kicking in.

“Hyung.”

“Hmm?”

“Should I be worried?”

Minho lifts his head to look Jeongin in the eye, and the concern is visible on the younger’s face. Minho feels his heart drop, because Jeongin doesn’t usually notice these kind of things. But now, he does, and it’s only either Jeongin has grown so much in a short period of time or Minho had just been very obvious today, of all days.

“ _Hyung_.” Jeongin’s frown deepens, and it’s only when Minho realizes that tears has spilled from his eyes, exposing his vulnerable self for the first time to one of his closest friends.

 _Fuck you, Alejandro_.

Minho quickly wipes his tears away, and he forces a smile. He feels Jeongin place a hand on his back, the younger’s attempt to comfort him, and Minho feels the lump forming in his throat.

Minho shakes his head, dismissing the serious atmosphere which was brought by no one else but him.

“I’ll just miss 3racha so much.”

“Hyung!”

Minho giggles, relief washing over him as Jeongin slaps him at the back playfully and the worry in his face disappears, and he’s smiling back at Minho.

“They’ll be back soon. They promised.” Jeongin says after their laughter dissipated.

3racha just finished their promotions for their most recent album, and has recently announced that they will be going on hiatus, leaving out the part of the day of their comeback. Or if they're even coming back. The announcement stirred a lot of concern to the entire fandom. 

_Does this mean 3racha will be gone for a long time?_

_How long do we have to wait? Will they even come back?_

Minho remembers stressing over the comments on 3racha’s fan café page the night of the hiatus announcement, and he never understood why he did, because it was a complete waste of time, and only made him even more depressed than he already was. Minho and Jeongin spent hours on the phone that night, trying to comfort each other, assuring one another that their faves are only going on a hiatus to have their much deserved break.

Jeongin was the one who introduced Minho to 3racha, and Minho will forever be in debt to him because if it wasn’t for Jeongin, Minho would have never met his refuges, his sanctuary, his emotional support.  

 _“I need the time to take a break and chill_.” Minho suddenly breaks the silence with a 3racha hook, and Jeongin immediately lights up, straightening his back as he joins in.

“ _I_ _wanna have a good time with you, EY!”_ They have their arms slung around each other’s shoulders as they wave their drinks up in the air – Minho with his now empty bottle of soju, and Jeongin with his carton of milk.

 _“But there’s no time, gotta move! TIK TOK!_ ” They fall into fits of giggles right after, and for that brief moment, Minho actually feels okay.  

-

**11 hrs, 1 minute earlier**

Despite Jeongin’s insistent request and irresistibly adorable plead for Minho to just stay over for the night, Minho doesn't cave in. He falters though, because, truthfully, who could resist those puppy eyes?

Minho could, apparently.

“I have to do my laundry.” Is what comes out of Minho’s mouth as what he thinks is an acceptable and logical reason for him to leave. He gets up from the floor and dusts himself.

“Hyung _, it’s_ _10 pm_!” Jeongin deflates and crashes himself on the couch, a clear sign that he’s about to give up on the argument he's only gonna lose. Minho hides his smile as he makes his way to the front door.

“Your point being?” He shoves his right foot in his sneakers, looking behind him to raise a brow at the younger.

“No one –” Jeongin starts, still devastatingly sprawled on the couch and raises one hand to make an emphasis, “- and I mean _no one_ does their laundry at 10 in the evening.”

Minho shakes his head as he chuckles, amazed at how naïve Jeongin can still get despite being in his third year in university.

“Have you not been stressed enough yet to not have experienced cramming your laundry during late nights?”

Jeongin abruptly sits up, dumbfounded. “What?”

Minho’s giggles resonates all over the apartment, and he slowly makes his way to the front door, thinking he's all clear-cut about leaving.

But when Minho grabs for the doorknob, the smile disappears from his face, and a wave of desolation crashes on to him, and for a moment, he considers about staying.

Because in here, in Jeongin's studio apartment, he feels secure, safe, happy, _distracted._

The whole place, Jeongin included, feels like an escape to him from the real world, from his problems, from the stupid heartbreak.

But for some reason, Minho doesn't want to hide away from reality. He wants to deal with it face-to-face, alone, and brave.

“Hyung! What do you mean ‘ _yet’_?”

The dilemma clings unto him, but Minho finds himself swinging the door open.

Jeongin calls out to him, and he gathers what's left of his will to not look back at the boy, because if he does, Minho might not find the heart to leave.

With a heavy heart, Minho staggers out of Jeongin’s apartment.

“Hyung!”

He shuts the door behind him.

-

**present time**

 

“Who the hell are you?”

That _is_ the question.

The only question that matters in Minho’s life. The only question that Minho gives much thought, much more thought than any of his exam questions combined.

 

Who _is_ Minho?

 

_Who am I?_

_How do I live as a person?_

_What purpose do I have in this world?_

_Who the hell am I, and just what in the world am I wearing?!_

 

The last thing Minho should be worrying about right now is his outfit.

But he finds that fairly impossible, especially when J.ONE’s piercing gaze lingers on him long enough for Minho’s liking, long enough to make Minho feel conscious and have him tugging on the hem of his worn-out shirt.

He looks down at his attire and internally shudders. Of all of Minho’s looks, 3racha has to see _this_ – A 4-year-old AC/DC shirt (bought during the annual rock festival in Busan last 2014), paired with black skinny jeans and low-cut Chucks, and an ugly golden Rolex watch.

Jesus.

Why couldn’t they have seen him in his prom outfit instead? Why couldn’t they have seen him with his pink strawberry-printed apron while he attempts to make pancakes, in which Felix told him that he looked _really_ lovely? Or that one time when he was really feeling himself and dressed up like he owns the entire world? Why couldn’t they have seen him in a plain white shirt and sweatpants as he stays up all night doing his work?

Why, of all of Minho’s looks, does 3racha has to see this hair-shriveled, hung over, just-woke-up version of him?

Minho believes that his faves are now probably perceiving him as some kind of punk emo –

“-sasaeng?!”

Minho blinks as he snaps out of his own thoughts. He is a little too late though, because the only thing that he catches from J.ONE’s mouth is the last word.

Minho doesn’t need to hear the whole sentence to know what is being accused of him. The word rings in his ears, baffling him, leaving him speechless and in disbelief. He’s not entirely sure what to make out of the sudden (and not to mention false) accusation. Minho doesn’t even know how to react, or if he’s even entitled to, for that matter.

He doesn’t realize that CB97’s hand is still on his back – _this whole time!_ – until the latter removes it, and he makes his way towards J.ONE.

It feels weird for Minho to see J.ONE _scowling,_ with his brows furrowing and the visible wrinkles in his forehead and everything. He’s always perceived as the sunshine of the trio, the loud and cheerful one who likes to give his hyungs random hugs, chews with his mouth full of food, belts out random noises just to annoy the hell out of the other two members, attempts jokes on a daily basis, and adorably sulks when neither of his hyungs give him any reactions.

Minho has always known him that way. J.ONE, in front of the camera.  

Minho observes silently as CB97 places a hand on J.ONE’s shoulder. With one swift move, J.ONE simply brushes him off.

J.ONE, off camera.

“Ji-” CB97 starts, but immediately stops himself. A few steps behind them, SpearB exhales out a breath. If it was one of relief, or exasperation, Minho couldn’t figure it out.

Minho looks from SpearB to CB97 to J.ONE, and he has absolutely no idea what’s happening. The tension is vague, impalpable, and with Minho’s lacking ability of being able to read emotions correctly, reckons it as one-sided. Though he’s not sure which side it’s coming from, nevertheless, it’s _there_.

“I’m not a sasaeng.” Minho croaks out, his voice still seeming to be stuck in his throat.

“What’s that?” SpearB raises a brow at him, urging him to repeat himself.

“I’m not a sasaeng.” Minho repeats, louder this time, his voice faltering only a tad bit.

J.ONE frowns, but then again, his frown has been there on his face the whole time, and Minho impulsively takes a tiny step back when the boy opens his mouth.

“You’re in _our private yacht_.”

“I- I know!” Minho retorts without thinking, which he eventually realizes wasn’t exactly the best thing to say.

Minho didn’t think it possible, but J.ONE’s frown deepens.

Minho starts to stammer. “I- I mean, no. I didn’t know. _Shit_.”

Minho sighs and looks up at the ceiling and tries to wrap his head around the fact that 3racha’s _private yacht_ has some kind of first class chandelier as their source of artificial light.

“Go on.”

Minho turns his head to look at the person who spoke, CB97, and the latter sends him a faint smile.

Minho feels himself mirroring the small grin, his chest feeling a tad bit lighter as a tiny portion of his nerves dissolves, courtesy of CB97’s kind gesture.

Minho inhales, holds the same breath for like a second and a half, exhales, and finds the courage to speak up again.

“Okay. First of all, I am _not_ a sasaeng. Though, I _am_ your fan – your biggest fan, actually. I just – I love your music _very_ much.”

SpearB clears his throat, sending Minho a knowing look which indicates that he's going out of topic.

“Right, sorry. Anyway, last night! Last night, after leaving Jeongin’s apartment, I went straight to horn pub. It’s the bar where Felix works at during weekends. Then, I uhh..” Minho eyes them, all three of them, and is surprised to realize that all of them are listening intently.

“We had drinks, of course. I mean, it’s a bar.” Minho chuckles awkwardly, the laughter dissipating as quickly as it comes in, when he sees the serious looks on the trio’s faces.

“And then,” Minho’s voice softens as he goes on, because he’s not even sure where he’s going with the explanation anymore. “We uhh.. left the bar.”

Minho puts on his thinking face as he tries to remember, not only for the sake of the explanation, but mostly also for his own sake. Because if he is to be honest, Minho’s memory of last night stops at when he demanded for the strongest drink from Felix. He’s got flashes of other moments – him standing on a bar stool, Felix pinching both of his cheeks to wake him up or to stop him from doing something stupid or illegal – Minho’s not really sure, Felix dragging him out of the bar, and the look of Felix’s messy living room.

“Oh, and we headed straight to Felix’s apartment!” Minho pipes up when the memory comes to him, feeling relieved for a fraction of a moment, until he realizes that he still has one missing piece yet to find.

If Felix brought him to his apartment last night, how did Minho end up being in 3racha’s stupid and very expensive private yacht?

“And then, how I got here…” Minho tries to think. “Honestly…”

And then it hits him. The memory. But it doesn’t come crashing back in visions.

It comes back to him in _feelings_.

Unceasing fucking feelings.

Minho remembers the dampness on his cheeks. The lurch in his heart. The spinning of his head. The long heavy steps he took. The gush of the wind. The sound of metal clanking. The familiar melody. The cold metal railing. The homey cushion he lay in. The void, the emptiness, the loneliness.

Minho turns away from 3racha, hoping they won’t notice the change of his spirit, and fixes his gaze out the same rectangular window, at the undulate movement of the ocean waves.

The water looks absolutely enticing. Minho can’t swim to save his life but he could just about jump off the yacht right now.

“So you’re saying,” J.ONE interrupts his thoughts, “that you got drunk and just somehow landed on our yacht?”

Minho knows the question is rhetorical, but that is _exactly_ what happened. And Minho speaks only of the truth, and nothing but the truth.

So he says, with all the confidence he could muster, “Yes.”

J.ONE scoffs, and Minho’s head throbs. He’s not sure if it’s because of the hangover or the poking irritation. “Sounds exactly like a reason some sasaeng would make up.”

Minho sighs then, frustrated, exasperated, _done_.

The hangover itself is already killing him, and it does not help at all that the dreadful yet inevitable feelings of last night came crashing back to him, reminding Minho of the heartbreak he is yet to deal and get over with, and now, to add to Minho's long list of frustrations, he learns that his most favorite person in the world, is actually probably a bona fide asshole.

Minho closes his eyes, and inhales. He can feel his blood boiling, the agitation stirring him into a whirlpool of emotions he knows he won't be able to control if he lets himself head down that path.

“Listen.” He starts, keeping his eyes closed because he thinks seeing any one of the trio's faces would cause him to spill the brimming emotions he's desperately trying to contain.

“I have other problems - problems more significant and relevant - problems that I'd much rather dwell on and cry over for days, weeks even, than waste my time following you three around. Even if I get paid to do it, even if someone gives me the chance, I will _never_ stalk you, because I _am_ my mother's only son, and I was raised to respect other people's privacy.”

Minho waits for them to speak, like an idiot, still with his eyes closed. He gulps when he hears nothing, and he starts to think that maybe the trio has abandoned him right there.

He peeks with his one eye, and sees SpearB snickering, CB97 trying to hide the smile on his face, and J.ONE staring at him with an expression Minho can't quite fathom.

“What I’m trying to say is,” Minho continues, finally finding the courage to keep both of his eyes open, “I’m not a sasaeng, and me being here in your private yacht right now, is purely unintentional, believe me or not. And I truly apologize for the commotion. I really am sorry.” Minho does a 90 degree bow, straightens up, then attempts to fix his hair.

“And if I may ask, can I please be dropped off on the nearest stop?”

Silence passes them once again, the trio staring at Minho as if he’s some calculus problem they’re trying to solve. Did he say something wrong?

“Do you think this is a bus?” J.ONE says, sarcastic, but Minho couldn't help but notice that the spite in his voice has toned down.

Minho blinks at him in response.

In his defense, Minho has no idea how yachts work.

“I don’t think we can have stops.” CB97 chimes in, looking a little apologetic even if there’s absolutely no reason for him to be.

As if reading the question in Minho's mind, SpearB says,“We’re heading straight to Jeju.”

“ _Jeju.”_ Minho repeats, taking the information as slowly as he can. He nods.

“The tangerine island. Right. Jeju island. Okay, cool.”

Minho lets out a panicked laugh. “I love Jeju. Never been there, but I _love_ it!”

CB97 shoots him a worried look, and Minho can just sense that the man is panicking just as much as he is. But unlike Minho, he knows how to keep it all under control.

“Maybe Woojin will know what to do.” SpearB says all of a sudden, and with the mention of the name, _Woojin_ \- whoever that is - the other two members of 3racha visibly relax.

“Good idea. I'll bring him out.” CB97 disappears out a door that Minho can only assume leads to the bedrooms.

He doesn't know this Woojin person, but Minho prays he can help him get out of this yacht ASAP. Felix must be worried sick of him.

Felix.

“Felix!” Minho cries out loud when the thought of Felix waking up to Minho missing from his apartment only crosses his mind. Felix tends to overthink a lot, like a lot _a lot,_ and Minho's certain he's about to have a taste of hell when Felix finds out what he has gotten himself into.

Minho frantically taps at his jean pockets as he looks for his phone, and he pulls out a piece of gum, his wallet, the receipt from the convenience store yesterday but the phone - s _hit, it's not here._

His shirt doesn't have any pockets, but he still taps around it anyway, on his torso, his shoulders and his back, because at this point, Minho is just deadass panicking.

Great. Just great.

Minho has reached the peak level of his unfortunate luck. He knows things like these are inevitable, but this one is incessant, continuous, almost feeling like the world is making fun of him.

It's shit after shit after shit after shit.

“You okay there, buddy?”

“Yeah.” Minho nods, snapping out of his damned thoughts. “I'm fine.” He shoots SpearB a quick smile, and instantly shifts his eyes away.

He tries not to look at SpearB and J.ONE. He's already embarrassed himself enough, and has bothered them a lot. For Pete's sake, he unintentionally invaded their _privacy_.

Minho just couldn't figure out what he did wrong in this world for him to deserve all this.

“Wait, we didn't get your name.”

“Oh, right.” Minho replies nonchalant, his voice sounding like all his energy were sucked right out of him.

He still doesn't face them when he replies, and instead allows his eyes to lose focus out the vast blue sea.

“It's Minho. Lee Minho.”

It takes a moment when SpearB speaks up again, but this time, he didn't sound like he's talking to Minho anymore.

“What's wrong?”

His curiosity gets the best of him, and so Minho turns towards them, and the first thing he sees is SpearB scanning J.ONE with a look of confusion and impatience in his face and then there's, J.ONE, stunned and frozen in his place.

But he isn't staring back at SpearB.

J.ONE stares at Minho.

And Minho stares back at him, confused because the look J.ONE is giving him gives Minho the feeling that he’s missing _something_.

They stare at each other for what felt like forever to Minho, and for the whole time, Minho couldn't figure out what he's supposed to figure out.

Maybe because he did not try enough, did not try to explore and interpret the look in J.ONE’s eyes.

The clue was _just_ in his eyes.

That is, among all the other expressions his face holds, is recognition.

 

J.ONE stares at Minho in recognition.

 

-

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the song minho was listening to while drinking: all i want - kodaline (lmao he's sad ok)  
> let me know what u guys think of this chapter bc wORD VOMIT heh,  
> [cc](https://curiouscat.me/munchlaxx)  
> [twt](https://twitter.com/hellochangbin)


	4. placebo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> nice to know im not d-word,, lmao   
> here's a monster chapter for leaving u all w a cliffhanger last time and coming back after 3 mos rawr  
> ps. unbeta'd so im really sorry for mistakes

**present day**

 

It all happens in slow motion. 

The way the sea breeze coming in from the open deck ruffles Jisung’s hair, the way the tiny ripples of waves hit the yacht, shaking the floorboards just a tad bit. The way the man in front of Jisung stands motionless and silent, the only movement coming from his eyes, blinking ever so steadily. The way Jisung’s heart, as he continues to stare at the face that seemed to only get  _ prettier _ the longer he stared, sets off a blaring sound that only Jisung can hear. The sound of a siren, a siren warning him that his assumptions are wrong. That it isn’t what Jisung thinks it is. 

That he  _ isn’t  _ who Jisung thinks he is. 

Jisung bit his tongue when the words ‘ _ Who are you _ ’ almost leaves his mouth, when he almost asks something out of the blue - something unrelated to the present situation, something about the past that happened years ago. 

Taking a deep shaky breath, Jisung willed his thoughts to shut down, eyes still transfixed on the pair that has been staring back at him unfalteringly. Jisung may be mentally shook, but he refuses to be the first to look away. Blame it on his tremendous amount of pride.

The man - Lee Minho (that’s what he said his name is) - blinks again, slowly, delicately, his eyelids fluttering like a flower blooming in spring, and Jisung gulps. 

_ Damn fuck, even his  _ blinking _ resembles him so much. _

Breathtaking - that’s what it is. 

The warmth that sprouts in his chest is the same feeling of when he’s just about to get up on stage and he hears his fans screaming, calling out for his name. It’s the same feeling when their company CEO compliments the song he had been working on for  _ days,  _ when he wakes up to the rays of sunlight passing through his window and he realizes that he’s completely free of work-related duties for that day. It’s the same feeling when Jisung takes a good look at the crowd on their first sold out concert, and sees the arena filled with people that love and support him for his talent and his music. 

Breathtaking. That’s what it is. 

That’s what  _ he _ is. 

The sound of a door banging open startles Jisung out of his trance, and at the corner of his eye, sees that Minho flinches as well (also Changbin, who had kept glancing back and forth between the two boys in utmost confusion the whole time). Chan and Woojin appears, their voices rippling through the awkward air around them and dissipating the tension out of the room. Jisung doesn’t wait for either of the two older members to speak to them before turning around and walking out of the same door. 

 

-

 

“What did you say your name was again?”

It takes a short while for Minho to absorb CB97’s question, taking an entire moment to recover from the fleeting staredown he just had with the love of his life, J.ONE. Which reminds Minho to reassess his feelings for and consider if the boy still deserves that title after everything that has happened today. Yes, he’s cute and super duper fucking talented, but as his highschool science teacher always tells them whenever someone from the class misbehaves, ‘ _ Attitude counts’. _ Minho knows that she meant it to be as some sort of advice when one grows up and has to face the real world, but he thinks it’s also applicable when one has to figure out who deserves to be called as their one true love. Theoretically speaking, of course. 

“Minho. Lee Minho.” He says still a little dazed, and the guy who came in with CB97 suddenly steps forward to shake his hand. 

“Hi. I’m Kim Woojin.” The man offers him a smile as he firmly shakes Minho’s hand, the latter faltering just a little bit as he tries to take in the other’s larger build and overall intimidating vibe. Minho couldn’t guess what role Woojin plays in 3racha’s career, but he sure dresses up like someone with authority and the power to hold good management with his white button-up, black slacks and leather shoes. After taking in Woojin’s get up, Minho gets the sudden urge to come clean. 

“I’m not a sasaeng.” Minho clarifies, which sends the two older boys laughing out loud. SpearB, on the other hand, only smiles and shakes his head in amusement. Minho’s heart skips a little, and he can’t wait to scream at Felix’s face to tell him that he gets it now - when Felix said that SpearB has a really nice smile. 

Felix isn’t really a 3racha fan. The boy tends to tune Minho and Jeongin out whenever their conversation direct to the said artist, and he only seldom listens to their music (at least when he’s not  _ forced  _ to anyway), but in spite of all that, he gushes about SpearB’s smile every chance he gets. Minho thinks he’s a bit superficial (and creepy) for that. 

“I’ll just go check if Ji-” SpearB cuts himself off, clears his throat, then continues, “ _ J.ONE _ ’s all right. If you’ll excuse me.” He flashes a quick smile towards Minho’s direction, then heads towards the same door where J.ONE left, CB97 patting him at the back when he passes by. 

Another thing to note about 3racha is that they  _ never _ reveal their real names to the public. Minho doesn’t know why. The rest of the fandom doesn’t know why. Nobody knows why. It doesn’t stop the fans from guessing though, which has actually become one of the fandom’s entertainment whenever the trio doesn’t have any public appearances or activities. It even came to a point where some fans made bets about it. This one user from the fan  café,  _ J.ONE_KING _ , bets all of their albums plus a hundred thousand won that the ‘CB’ in ‘CB97’ stands for ‘Changbin’. Another user,  _ maaaaaaatryoshKA,  _ chides back at them saying that they don’t stand a chance at all because 3racha won’t ever reveal their birth names. Ever. 

(“Do they think they’re cool keeping their names a mystery or something?” Felix butts in when he hears Minho and Jeongin discuss the buzz about 3racha’s real names yet again, which earns him a plushie thrown at his face. Felix thinks SpearB’s smile is cute, but he also occasionally makes remarks about them, mostly only for the satisfaction of annoying the hell out of his two friends.)

“So, I’ve been told about your situation, Minho-ssi.” Woojin says as he makes his way to sit on the sofa, the one where Minho literally just woke up from, CB97 following suit. 

“I truly am sorry for invading. I swear this is all just… an accident.” Minho inwardly cringes at the last word, failing to find a better word to explain how this whole situation ceased to be. 

“As CB97 here told me, you were hoping if we could drop you off at the nearest stop. Well, if you wish to be dropped off at the middle of the ocean, it would be our pleasure to do that for you.” 

Minho blinks at the two men who stares back at him with a straight face. After what felt like a whole second, they both burst out laughing, Woojin even going as far as slapping his knee for good measure. Minho forces an obnoxious laugh when he realizes that it was supposed to be a joke, a joke which, he doesn’t even find funny, but he thinks he needs to play along if he doesn’t want to be actually pushed off this fucking yacht. 

“I was only joking, Minho-ssi.” Woojin says when he’s finally calmed down. 

“I know. And  _ please _ , just call me Minho.” Minho fakes a smile. 

“Okay, well.” Woojin suddenly stands up as he clasps his hands together, the mere action startling Minho because he looks as though he is already wrapping up the conversation. They barely even discussed anything yet. 

“Since we can’t stop at anywhere else because our route directly heads from Busan to Jeju, then I’m afraid you’d just have to be dropped off at Jeju as well. Would that be okay?” 

“It’s more than okay. Thank you. Thank you so much. I promise I will try not to get in anyone’s way for the rest of the voyage.” 

“Do you know anybody from the island who can come pick you up?” 

“Uhm no, not from the island but I’m planning to ask my friend if he can pick me up since -” 

“Great! Is there anything else I can help you with?” Woojin asks with such a warm smile that Minho’s having mixed feelings about him right now. How can he look so intimidating, crack lame jokes and offer soft smiles in the span of five minutes?  

“Oh, clothes!” CB97 suddenly chimes in, and Woojin gasps at the realization. 

“Oh, right! You might want to change out of your yesterday clothes.” 

Minho frantically shakes his head. “No, no, no, no. I’m fine.” 

“I think I might have brought along extra merch shirts.” Woojin muses to himself, “Be right back!” Then he disappears out the same door that everyone else has gone in and out of since earlier. 

“M-merch shirt?” Minho cries in disbelief, eyes already watering in elation. Official merchandise costs a ton shit, and Minho vividly remembers gushing about every item and wishing how he could afford even just one of them. One of his favorites is the official t-shirt, a black tee with the silhouettes of the trio as the design (the same image used from one of their most recent album cover) and the name ‘3racha’ written in cool graffiti below. 

If Woojin’s talking about the same merch shirt, Minho is gonna freak. It could just be anything really, and Minho would still freak. 

Minho is too caught up in his excitement that he momentarily forgets that CB97’s still there with him, the latter chuckling softly at his starstrucked reaction yet again. 

“Oh, sorry. Sorry, I freaked out again, didn’t I?” 

CB97 shakes his head, but before he could say anything, SpearB appears to join them in the room, J.ONE following closely behind despite looking like he’s just forced to come with.

Reality sinks in on Minho again - that he’s on a freaking yacht with 3racha. With 3racha! The one and only. The best of the best. The kings. The Gods. The greatest of all time. 

“Hey, so have you found a way to contact your friend?” SpearB asks with hands shoved in his pockets, looking exceptionally composed. 

“Oh, I almost forgot! Felix!” Minho gasps, then taps at his pockets for his phone again, even though he already proved it missing a while ago. 

“Here.” SpearB blatantly hands him a smartphone, which catches Minho by surprise. Now, he isn’t one to ask unnecessary questions or jump to conclusions or anything, but the way J.ONE violently reacted only proved Minho’s assumption correct. 

“Hyung, you can’t just give him your phone!” 

“It’s my  _ old phone _ with my  _ old number _ , so it’s fine. I don’t really mind.” SpearB urges Minho to take the device, and Minho can only gawk at him, like he’s being handed a sack of gold instead of a Samsung Galaxy S8. 

“ _ Hyung _ .” J.ONE whines at CB97 this time, trying to get the leader on his side. 

“Minho  _ does  _ need to contact someone about his whereabouts, though.” 

J.ONE groans and defeatedly sprawls himself on the couch. 

Minho tentatively takes the phone from SpearB, holding it with both hands, and though 2 / 3 members allowed him to take it, he still feels the need to assure them that he wouldn’t do any funny business. 

“I swear I’ll just call Felix and that’s  _ it _ .” He says, and after receiving two approval nods (J.ONE refused to even look at him much less say anything to him), Minho moves out to the viewing deck to make his call. 

“Shit.” Minho mutters under his breath when he realizes that he doesn’t have Felix’s number memorized. 

“Shit.” He mutters again as he types in his own number, praying to whatever god that he only left his phone somewhere in Felix’s apartment, and that he didn’t actually lose it.

He presses the phone to his ear and stares out the sea, shivering a little as the wind prickles at his skin. To his relief, the call is picked up on the third ring and he is greeted by his friend’s expectant voice. 

“Hello?” 

“Felix!!!” 

“MINHO! OH MY GOD YOU ASSHOLE. WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU? ARE YOU OKAY? I WOKE UP AND YOU WERE JUST  _ GONE _ . AND YOU LEFT YOUR PHONE- ” 

“Okay, wait. Felix, calm down-” 

“-AND YOU NEVER GO ANYWHERE WITHOUT YOUR PHONE!” 

“I know, Felix. I’m sorry. Will you stop screaming? My headache's not getting any better here.” 

Minho hears Felix exhale at the other line, which is a good sign because it means his friend is finally starting to calm himself down. 

“God, Minho. I seriously thought you were dead.” 

“Even  _ better _ !” 

Felix sighs exasperatedly. “Minho, what did I say about joking about that kind of stuff?” 

“Right! Well, get this. I’m in a yacht.” 

“A what?” 

“A yacht!” Minho leans against the metal raining but jerks away almost immediately upon the freezing contact. 

“A yacht? Why the hell are you in a - oh my god.  _ Oh my god _ .”

“What? What?”

“I’m talking about my advice, Minho! Did you just take my advice literally?” 

Minho pauses for a sec to ponder about what his friend is referring to. A vague memory of Felix giving a long ass lecture about something that Minho doesn’t even clearly remember comes back to mind. He thinks it was probably one of Felix’s drunk advices, which are the  _ best ones  _ if Minho’s to be completely honest, but they’re also the same ones that Minho hardly remembers. Because well, when Felix’s drunk, 99% of the time, Minho is also drunk. 

“Oh shit.” 

“Minho! That was just supposed to be a metaphor!” 

“I don’t even remember what you said to me, Felix. This is all just coincidence. Or destiny. Oh gosh, I think this might actually be destiny.” Minho sighs dreamily when he thinks about how the universe conspired to bring him to meet his faves. Speaking of whom, he spots the trio back in the room looking as though they are in a serious discussion. 

“What destiny? Are you even okay there? Are you sure you’re not kidnapped or anything like that?” Felix begins to sound exasperated now, and Minho considers about telling him the truth about being in an actual yacht with the real and official 3racha. 

Minho hears one specific angry hushed voice from 3racha’s direction, and he gets a feeling that he has to end his call soon.  

“Look, Felix. I don’t have my phone with me right now, and my wallet doesn’t actually hold that much cash-” 

“Yeah, you’re a dumbass. A poor dumbass.” 

“ANYWAY! Considering I’m broke and all that, can you maybe I don’t know- Can you pick me up at Jeju?” 

A shot of silence. Minho nibbles at his finger nervously. 

“Oh, you mean the jeju resto which has the black pork specialty?” 

“No, no, no. I mean, the island. The actual island. Well, the yacht - the one I’m in right now - is heading over there -” 

“WAIT, ARE YOU SAYING THAT THE YACHT IS MOVING?!” 

“YES, THE YACHT IS MOVING CAN YOU STOP SCREAMING? Felix,  my headache-” 

He hears Felix whimper at the other line and Minho quickly lowers his voice. 

“Sorry. I know you’re just worried. Well, I just - I’ll explain everything to you when we meet there, okay?” 

Felix doesn’t reply, and Minho knows he’s still considering it.

“Please, Felix. I’ll pay you back for the tickets. I’ll explain everything when we meet there.” 

Finally, he hears Felix sigh. 

“Jesus Christ, Minho. Just when I thought you couldn’t get any crazier.” Minho can imagine Felix rubbing his temples in frustration right at that very moment. 

Minho giggles. “So you’ll come for me, right?” 

“Yeah, whatever.” 

“Yay! Can you also bring extra clothes for me please? Oh, and perfume.” 

“Since when do you use perfume?” 

_ Ever since I woke up to 3racha peering down at me while I probably stank with alcohol.  _

But Minho’s not stupid enough to tell him that. At least not yet, anyway. 

“Just - I’ll see you tonight, okay?” 

“Okay, whatever.” 

Behind him, Minho hears J.ONE calling out to him and he’s using the s-word (sasaeng) to call him again. 

“Hey Felix, I have to go.” Minho whispers into the phone as J.ONE approaches him alarmingly fast.  So in a single breath, he says, “Pleasedomeafavorandsavethisnumberokaythankyou LOVE YOU, BYE!” 

Minho quickly ends the call just in time for J.ONE to stop right in front of him. The boy just stands there, maybe half a meter away, staring at Minho like he's some math problem he has to solve. 

"Umm I'm done with my call?" Minho fake smiles, waving SpearB's phone to emphasize his point. J.ONE says nothing, only takes a step closer that makes Minho back away in reflex. Minho can feel the cold metal railing pressed against his back and he's certain if J.ONE moves a tad bit closer he's just gonna fall off the yacht now. 

J.ONE still looks like he's studying him, eyebrows furrowing. 

"What's going on?" Minho asks, glancing over J.ONE's shoulder where SpearB and CB97 has joined them, watching as their youngest member corner their unwelcome guest. 

" _ Ji _ ." CB97's tone is cold, the one that makes J.ONE look behind him, and sighs when he sees the stern look on the leader's face. 

J.ONE takes a step back, and Minho finally relaxes.

"Hyungs said I should apologize for acting the way I did earlier. So I'm sorry." J.ONE says with no sincerity whatsoever, and to make it worse, he adds, "I guess." 

"Hey, that's not how you apologize!" SpearB hisses at the back. 

"I know how to do it, hyung! I'm not a kid!" J.ONE retorts, arms flailing as he does so in frustration. 

"But you clearly don't know  _ when  _ to do it." 

"Hey, okay. Enough." CB97 places a hand on SpearB's shoulder, while sending J.ONE a warning glare, telling him to shut up. 

"I'm so sorry, Minho-ssi. I swear we have better dynamic on most days." CB97 tells him, and Minho laughs a little at that. 

_ Of course you do.  _ Minho bites back the sarcastic reply, not wanting to add more fuel to the fire. 

"Please, just call me Minho." 

J.ONE exhales before turning to look back at him, evidently trying so hard to look much calmer, but failing to a great extent since his brows seem to just knit even more. 

"I'm sorry." He finally says, and Minho swears he catches the glint of sincerity in his eyes even if it only lasted a mere second. 

"Apology accepted." Minho replies, feeling giddy all of a sudden. 

J.ONE suddenly offers a hand without saying anything. Minho stares at his palm for a second, before staring up at J.ONE's face, then stares back at the hovering hand again. 

Minho doesn't think it through when he places his palm right on top of J.ONE'S, the contact making his heart race almost immediately, but  _ ugh. _ The boy really needs to moisturize his hand. 

"What are you doing?" J.ONE narrows his eyes at him. 

"What?" 

"The phone!" 

Oh.

"OH! Right. The phone." Minho immediately pulls his hand away, feeling the blush rise up in his cheeks.

He hears SpearB and CB97 holding back their laughter, and Minho feels so embarrassed that he can't even look at any of them in the eye. 

"I knew that. Haha." Minho adds unhelpfully as he hands J.ONE the device. 

"Whatever." J.ONE says one last time before turning away, SpearB pointing at his face as he passes them by. 

"Are you blushing?" 

"SHUT UP!"

Minho just wants to jump off the yacht. 

 

-

 

**Approx. two weeks earlier**

 

"Is this about stupid Hyunjin  _ again _ , because I swear on my grave, Minho, I will-"

"No, this isn't about  _ him _ . Why do you think that everything I do always has something to do with him?" Minho pushes Felix off of him who has been trying to keep him balanced as they trudged on the deserted sidewalk. They both had a few drinks at the bar and Felix took it upon himself to drag Minho out before his friend unleashes his drunk alter egos. 

It's too late anyway, Felix thinks, because Minho is already transitioning from Alejandro to Joaquin, alternately sobbing for no reason and cursing at Felix when he tells him they should go home. 

Minho stumbles before deciding to sit his ass on the curb of the sidewalk, and Felix watches cautiously to see what tricks he has up on his sleeves, but to his surprise, Minho does nothing. Just sits there looking up at the sky with his mouth slightly open. 

Felix sighs and moves to sit beside him, realizing that maybe his friend really is going through some serious shit more than he lets on. 

"So, if it's not your ex, then what is it this time?" 

Minho hums incoherently before saying, "3racha."

"Sorry?"

"3racha." He repeats a little louder this time, glaring at his friend with his whole face. 

Trying so hard not to crack a smile or tease the hell out of Minho for crying over stupid singers, Felix asks, "What happened to 3racha?" 

"They announced their hiatus. People think they’re not coming back." Minho's lower lip trembles and Felix immediately pulls him closer, letting the older lean against his shoulder. Minho sobs quietly for a while, and Felix doesn't feel like laughing at him anymore. 

"Also, my work got rejected again." 

"Oh no, Minho. I'm so sorry." 

Minho shakes his head then straightens up to look at him. "It's not your fault. Besides, I've only been rejected 16 times, and no one’s stupid enough to keep count of that. Not me. I’m not counting." Minho fake laughs before starting to sob again, and Felix pulls him into a proper hug, wrapping both arms around him, hoping it makes his friend a tiny bit better. 

"Maybe I should just stop and work with you at the bar."

"Hey, don't say that! You've gone this far, so why give up now?" 

"Because it's hopeless?" Minho mutters with a sniff, Felix not even caring if his friend spreads snot and tears all over his shoulder. 

"Hey, come on. I've read some of your work, and they're really not that bad." 

Minho pulls away and stares at him dead in the eye. 

"Don't lie to me. Give me an unbiased and honest feedback. Do it now while I'm still drunk and already miserable. Come on." 

Felix takes that as a challenge and returns his intense glare.

"There's one thing I'd like to know first."

"What is it?"

"Did you or did you not send in that prose and poem collection of yours?"

Minho doesn't say anything, but his gaze hardens and Felix takes that as a  _ yes.  _

"No offense, Minho. But among all of your works, 'the collection' is the worst."

"Wha- Hey!"

"Sorry, sorry. I mean, bad. It's bad. What about that dystopian world story you were so excited about?"

Minho heaves a heavy sigh. "I just  _ can't _ finish a novel for the life of me."

"You can't say that when you haven't even tried yet. For fuck's sake, you drop everything you're working on after three months." 

"I'm not patient enough for novels!" 

Felix rolls his eyes. 

"You have to work that out. You let me read some of your short stories, remember? And I  _ honestly  _ really  _ really  _ liked them. It's like - when I read them, they gave me this kind of feeling-" Minho raises a brow at this, "I can't really explain it. It's how you connect some stuff mentioned at the start of your story to the ending. Like the whole thing's bound with an imaginary string or something. Honestly, you are a great writer, Minho." 

A shot of silence passes them, Minho blinking steadily as he waits for Felix to proceed. 

"But?" Minho asks, "Your tone implies that there's a ' _but'_ following right there."

"Okay, okay. BUT-" Felix pauses, quickly racking his brain to look for the right words. "I think you're only focusing on one thing, when there's all these other things left for you to explore. Like only eating the icing when there's a whole damn cake right in front of you."

Minho shakes his head. "You're not really making any sense to me now, Felix." He rests his head back on Felix's shoulder, and Felix wraps an arm around him, pulling him closer. 

"I'm saying you just lack experience, is all. You know you're good with writing when it comes to your thoughts and feelings, and you seem to only focus on that, though I'm not saying it's a bad thing. That's what makes your writing great actually because there's always sincerity in your pieces-" 

"And that's what I'm always trying to get at." Minho interrupts.

"Exactly! And you've always done it. You've done so well, but I think it's time to start practicing on other things. You write so much about your feelings that you just end up struggling with writing about everything else, which is, well,  _ everything else.  _ Human interaction, conversations, describing scenery, actual real life struggles - no offense Minho but you suck at that, because you always huddle up in your little shell, facing your laptop  _ trying  _ to write, or- or reading something else and hoping you learn from it and try to incorporate it into your works. That’s the problem right there, Min. You need to get out and experience it first hand. You need to experience  _ the world _ . Talk to people, hold someone’s hand, feel the breeze in your hair, absorb the jovial energy at some festival, go for an interview that would get you shaking in your boots, steal a car, rob a bank,  _ I don’t know _ .  And do it  _ sober _ , you fucking idiot. How are you going to remember how it all feels when you're intoxicated? And it seems like after you met Hyunjin, he's all you can ever write about. No offense again but what even the fuck is that? I know you love him, I get it. But the world doesn't revolve around him. And ever since he broke your heart, you set your mind to write about nothing else but your heartbreak and your pain. I know it's only been like 3 months since you broke up but you're ruining your pace here. You wallow in self-pity and drown yourself in alcohol, as if it’s some fuel that you need in order for you to keep writing, and your heartbreak  _ and _ Hyunjun is  _ the car _ . You know what I think? Fuck that car! Go find another one, a better one. Or, you know what? Just get in a better vehicle. Like a helicopter, or a bulldozer. Oh! Oh, I know! A yacht! Man, I’ve always wanted to ride a yacht."

Minho grunts in agreement, his eyes droopy and looking like he's about to pass out any second. Felix pokes his forehead.

"Were you even listening to me?"

Minho only hums then snuggles his head closer to Felix, his hair tickling the younger's neck.

Felix chuckles a little and gives Minho's arm a little squeeze.

"Why is it that you never listen when I actually give some good advice, huh? I don't even know where all that came from but that sounded good, did it, Minho?"

Minho grunts again. "Alcohol talking."

Felix couldn't help but laugh. "Fuck you, that was all me."

After a minute or so, Minho finds the strength to lift his head up to look at his friend, his eyes half-open. 

"Do you really think my works are sincere?" 

"Yes, I really do." 

Felix doesn't think he's ever seen Minho smile so bright after that moment right there. 

 

-

**present day**

Minho gapes at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, unable to believe that he is wearing an official 3racha shirt (albeit two sizes larger because Woojin said that only the XL sizes are left, but Minho will take what he can get). Right after the awkward and embarrassing interaction with J.ONE earlier, Woojin appeared with the shirt and a pair of sweatpants both neatly folded. 

"You can take a shower in the bathroom." Woojin shows him the way, and Minho was just blown away when he realized how massive the yacht actually is. 

"Fucking hell." Minho couldn't help but curse under his breath as he steps into what looked like the yacht's living room. A man and a woman who Minho doesn't recognize sits on the couch, watching an action movie from the 90's on the plasma tv. The man is slender and has jet-black hair, and he has such cute red lips that Minho trips a little on his feet for staring too long. The woman has long black hair with bangs that fell short on her forehead, her eyes sharp and really  _ really  _ pretty. Minho bows at them slightly, noticing how their faces contorts to confused expressions probably upon seeing a stranger aboard with them. 

Woojin waves a hand at them, as if dismissing their reactions or gesturing that he'll explain the situation later. 

They get to the dining room next, a divider of some sort where the tv is attached partitioning the two rooms. Minho's breath hitches for the nth time again that day, awed at the full glassed windows all around the room, giving a perfect view outside the ocean. 

They reached the bathroom finally and before Woojin left Minho to do his business, Minho thanked him endlessly, and even pulls out his wallet to pay him for the shirt, but Woojin politely pushes back the cash being handed out to him.  

After the relaxing shower, Minho’s headache eased off completely, and he has never felt so good.

"This is the best day of my life." Minho says at his reflection after pinching his face a few times just to confirm that he isn't dreaming. 

Okay, so it’s real. It’s all happening in real life. He’s really in a yacht with 3racha on the way to Jeju island, wearing their official shirt. But what happens after they arrive? Surely, Minho has to go someplace else to meet up with Felix. But where? Minho’s never been to the place before and isn’t sure how to get by alone especially when he doesn’t have his phone and has only a small amount of cash with him. 

“This is also the worst day of my life.” As if on cue, Minho’s stomach grumbles and he clutches at it, as if that would help to ease up his hunger. 

Minho walks right into CB97 as soon as he walks out of the bathroom. 

“Oh, Minho! I was just about to ask you to come have lunch with us.” The man beams. 

Upon the mention of food, Minho’s eyes lighten up, then he remembers that he has already taken so much from them and starts to think if it’s even okay to keep receiving more.

“I’m fine, CB97. Sir.” 

CB97 chuckles, his little dimples showing in his cheeks. Minho fights the urge to poke it. 

“Just call me Chris.” 

“What?” 

It dawns on him a little too late, and Minho clasps a hand over his mouth, eyes widening.  

CB97 just told him his name. His real name!!! Minho knows CB97’s name!! Him, Lee Minho! Knows CB97’s real name! 

Chris laughs at his reaction once again, then all of a sudden pulls him by the wrist, on to the dining area where everyone else is waiting for them. 

“Oh, finally! Come join us, Minho. Take a seat.” Woojin is seated at the end of the dining table, and he motions to the vacant seats on his right side. The man and woman Minho saw earlier is settled on the closest seats on either side of him, and J.ONE and SpearB sits beside each other on the left side. CB97 - no, Chris - takes the seat opposite J.ONE, so that leaves the rightmost seat to Minho. 

SpearB nods at him as he settles down opposite him, Minho noticing how J.ONE’s glaring at him from his peripheral vision. Minho ignores him. 

“Dig in, everyone!” Chris yells excitedly before reaching over for the sweet and sour pork. Everyone else follows - reaching over for dishes, and quite naturally just falling into random chatter. Minho is about to reach for his chopsticks when he remembers to do something. He clasps his hands together, closes his eyes then mutters a silent prayer. 

Minho isn’t actually religious (he’s not even baptized), but being best friends with a catholic boy influenced him to pick up on some of his religious habits. Now every time Minho eats before meals, he makes sure to thank all the gods for blessing him with food to eat. 

"Thanks for the meal!" Minho helps himself with the dish nearest to him, and Chris also pushes several plates at his direction, which Minho gladly accepts. 

The light buzz of conversation in the table calms Minho a little bit, and he thinks it’s nice that both Woojin and Chan are trying to join him in as much as they can by asking him a few questions. Minho’s introduced to the two other people with them - the man, Park Jinyoung, is 3racha’s manager. Minho wanted to say that he looks too young and too handsome to  _ just  _ be their manager, but decides against it. The woman is Kang Seulgi, their all-around stylist. Woojin jokes that J.ONE can only talk to two girls in his life, Seulgi being one of them, and the other is his mom. Minho swears he sees smoke puffing out of J.ONE's ears in annoyance. 

"So, Minho, who's your favorite member among 3racha?" 

And there goes the million dollar question, ladies and gentlemen. 

Six pairs of eyes peer at Minho as they await his answer. Minho shoves a spoonful of rice into his mouth on purpose, so he can have more time to think about his response. Granted, the answer's seated right there (literally) in front of him, and he doesn't really need to think about it at all.

"After meeting them like this, I think I might have to reconsider." He says after swallowing, and Woojin whistles, while Chris and Jinyoung cries out an "Oooohh" like they're watching Minho in a boxing match and he just knocked down his opponent. 

"Bet someone's been hard on you huh?" Woojin tells him as he snickers, taking a glance at J.ONE's direction, who looks unamused the whole time. 

"It's not that. Someone else had just been nicer." Minho answers with a smile, and catches J.ONE’s sharp expression before they both look away from each other at the same time. 

Minho chuckles all of a sudden, earning everyone's attention. "Nah, I'm just messing with you guys. My favorite 3racha member has always been, and always will be," He pauses dramatically, giggling a little at everyone's expectant expression, 

"SpearB."

Said man stands up abruptly and gives a 90 degree bow, like he just won the most important award ever. 

"Aw, I thought you were gonna say J.ONE." Seulgi pinches the boy's cheek beside her, and J.ONE swats her hand away in annoyance. 

"Nah, I'mma SpearBabe all the way." Minho says despite feeling his heart lurch for lying to everyone. In his defense, his  _ REAL BIAS  _ had been nothing but a total ass around him since this morning. (Even though he already apologized for it, but that's obviously besides the point). 

Chris snorts. "SpearBabe?" 

"Oh yeah, that's what SpearB's fans call themselves." Minho explains, and realizes a second later, "I mean, that's what we call ourselves, SpearB stans. SpearBabe, that's what I am." 

If anyone ever catches on his mistake, no one mentions it. SpearB, who has already sat back down, offers him a high five. 

"SpearBabe! I like it. I'm gonna make it official."

For the first time since they all started with their meal, J.ONE finally speaks up. 

"You can't do that. We don't even have our own official fandom name."

"And why do you think that is?" SpearB retorts, glaring back at the other member. 

Chris clears his throat a little too loudly, and Woojin claps his hands to steal everyone's attention. 

"Okay, so what's your favorite 3racha song, Minho?" 

The tension finally leaves the room, and all gazes are back at him.

"Placebo." He answers almost immediately, blurting out the first song that came into his mind. It's not actually a lie since he loves all of their songs all at the same extent. 

" _ I'm doing good, I'm doing fine. Jalhago isseo I'm doin' alright."  _ Minho doesn't know what had gotten into him when he sings the first line to the said song, meeting the gaze of the member who owns the part as he finishes off. They almost fall into another staredown - J.ONE and Minho - when Seulgi suddenly lets out a little squeal. 

"Your voice is so cute, Minho! Can I pinch your cheeks too?"

Jinyoung reaches over the table to stop her. “No, Seulgi. Sit down.” 

Chris leans in a little closer to Minho and whispers, "She pinches everything she finds cute. And apparently, to her,  _ everything _ is cute."

Minho only laughs then hears Woojin agreeing with Minho's song pick. Jinyoung argues that 'Matryoshka' will always be THAT song, whatever that means, then SpearB joins in and tells them that his solo song will always be the best. 

Among the chaos over what feels like the most heated argument of the best 3racha song, Minho feels a pair of eyes lingering on him. And sure enough, J.ONE is staring at him, though he isn’t staring on his face, but on his.. chopsticks? 

Curious, Minho holds the utensil up his face to examine if there's something wrong with it.  When he looks back at J.ONE, the boy's eyes round up in surprise after having caught staring before looking away from Minho immediately.

 

-

 

Minho learned during lunch that it takes 12 hours to travel from Busan to Jeju by sea, which means they'll probably arrive at the island at 8 in the evening tonight. 

With nothing else to do, Minho decides to kill time at the open deck to admire the view of the sea and feel the breeze. Leaning against the railing for support, he leans over to look at the bubbles forming against the hull of the yacht as it comes in contact with the water, Minho giggling to himself as the bubbles fizzles in and out. 

He's interrupted from his own little world when the same speakers that blasted 3racha songs from this morning starts to play a rather familiar tune. 

Minho gasps loudly when he recognizes it. 

"This is my father's favorite english song!" 

Minho taps his foot and nods his head along to the beat. He's not entirely familiar with the lyrics, but he knows the melody by heart. 

Minho's supposed to be just nodding along, but he gets caught in the moment, and before he knows it, he steps away from the railing (just to be safe), then starts dancing along to the song. 

He twirls around with his hands waving above his head, then sways his hips left and right to match the beat. 

"VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO STAR! VIDEO KILLED THE RADIO STAR!" He sing-yells, and proceeds to do that annoying dance that Felix does every chance he gets which he copied off of a game. (Felix has a lot of influence on him, see). 

It looks very off-beat. 

"OH-AH-OH!" 

Minho was just shimmying his way to the couch when he spots a figure standing by the doorway. Minho straightens immediately, feeling the heat rise up in his cheeks for having been caught doing something humiliating. 

J.ONE steps closer, the light coming in from the window then properly illuminating his face to show his contorted expression. Minho's not sure if it's one of his many versions of a frown or if he's just trying to stop himself from laughing. 

"Were you supposed to be dancing?" The crack in his voice lets Minho realize that it was the latter. 

Minho clears his throat, and brushes off the bangs off his eyes nonchalantly. 

"Interpretative, to be exact." Minho holds his chin up high, trying to look the most confident when in fact he just wants to die of embarrassment. He has learned from a random podcast to act confident whenever he finds himself in an embarrassing situation. They claim it’s an effective way to feel less embarrassed, but right now, Minho really doesn’t feel like that at all. 

Especially when J.ONE burst out laughing, and Minho feels himself blushing furiously. 

If it's of embarrassment or the fact that J.ONE's finally laughing in front of Minho for the first time today, Minho doesn't know. Either way, it feels good. He has always liked the way J.ONE laughs, and hearing it now, in real life, is such a whole new experience. 

 

-

 

Jisung immediately wipes the smile off his face when he realizes what he has done. 

_ Stupid, don’t let your guard down.  _

Minho obviously looks baffled by the quick transition of his expressions, blinking at him confusedly as he plays at the hem of his 3racha shirt. It looks too big on him but for some reason, it doesn't make him look all that bad. For some reason. 

“Anyway, you looked ridiculous. Don’t do stuff like that again.” Jisung says quickly before turning away. Minho calls for him before he can make it to the door. 

“Hey, wait! You dropped your…” Minho trails off, and Jisung turns back around to see him examining his little pig plushie keychain that was supposedly hanging off the belt loop of his jeans. 

“- your pig.” Minho finishes as a small smile creeps on his face, then tosses the keychain over at Jisung. 

“Thanks.” Jisung mumbles after catching the little thing then hurries out the door in lightning speed. Finally out of the other boy’s sight, Jisung deflates against the closed door, and exhales a breath that he didn’t realize he was holding. 

Minho’s little smile flashes back in his mind and Jisung hits his head several times to keep it out. 

“Shut up. Shut up. Shut up. Shut up. Shut-” 

“Yo. Dumbass. Are you okay?” 

Jisung looks up to see Changbin staring at him with a concerned look, despite the nonchalant tone in his voice. 

“I’m fine, hyung.” He snaps before scurrying off to his room, clutching the pig chain in his hand for dear life. 

Once in his room, Jisung sprawls himself on the bed, and finally allows his mind to think about whatever it wants to think, filling his mind of thoughts of Minho. 

Jisung holds the pig chain up to stare at it, reminiscing how Minho smiled when he looked at it just mere minutes ago. He thinks about how Minho tossed it back to him, and Jisung’s heart sinks. 

To be honest, Jisung’s not entirely sure why he’s gotten so disappointed. 

He had been convincing himself the entire day, that it’s ‘ _ not him’ _ , and now that he has seen actual proof to confirm it, he feels like the whole world has let him down. 

When Minho tossed him the pig keychain, when Minho used his chopsticks earlier… 

The dominance in his right hand gives away the confirmation right there. 

The man outside isn't  _ his _ minho, because the Minho that he knows -  _ Jisung's Minho _ \- is left-handed. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> finally got the chance to explain a few things in this chapter! (3racha's names, minho's work, etc etc...) i think there are still a few points left to explain and i'll get to that in the future chapters,, icb this already reached 16k words and i still dont know half of what's happening in here jfjdkl FOR REAL   
> [cc](https://curiouscat.me/munchlaxx)  
> [twt](https://twitter.com/hellochangbin)


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